BRING on Carlisle – not once, not twice, not even three times.
Town face a quartet of clashes with the Cumbrians, two in League I and two in the Johnstone’s Paint Trophy, in the first six weeks of 2011 – not that Lee Clark will be complaining.
While promotion is the priority, Town’s manager has made no secret of his desire to go all the way to Wembley in the Johnstone’s Paint Trophy.
And he must have been delighted by the way his side got past Tranmere to make the two-legged Northern final with two goals from top scorer Jordan Rhodes either side of another penalty save by Alex Smithies.
This was another thoroughly professional performance, and it’s tantalising to think that a first trip to Wembley since 1995 is now only two games away.
Forced to make changes because of Peter Clarke’s suspension and injuries to Damien Johnson and Graham Carey, Town brought in Liam Ridehalgh at left-back and Joey Gudjonsson and Scott Arfield in central midfield.
Striker Alan Lee was handed a first start in five alongside Rhodes, with Joe Garner dropping to the bench.
Antony Kay was deployed as a centre-back and in Clarke’s absence, made captain against his former club.
While Town were chasing a fourth successive win, Tranmere were desperate to avoid a third straight defeat after home setbacks against Hartlepool and Leyton Orient.
With experienced striker Ian Thomas-Moore ruled out by a calf problem, their side included former Town striker Lucas Akins, who was paired with ex-Leeds man Enoch Showunmi up front.
Town had the first genuine effort of the game in the fifth minute, but Gudjonsson’s angled shot from the right was too high.
Then, when Lee Peltier picked out Gary Roberts with a great cross-field pass two minutes later, Lee latched onto the cross, but his shot on the turn was blocked by keeper Gunnar Nielsen, the on-loan Manchester City man from the Faroe Islands.
Showunmi was working hard to spark Tranmere, but it was Town who drew first blood in the 18th minute.
Lee played a key role, stretching to head on Jamie McCombe’s ball out of defence into the path of Rhodes, who got goal side of defender Jermaine Grandison and coolly lobbed Nielsen from 25 yards out.
Town deserved their lead, but Tranmere carved out a good chance in the 25th minute.
Scott Wootton, their on-loan Manchester United full-back, romped down the right and found Akins with his cross, but the header was too high to trouble Alex Smithies.
Then McCombe was on hand to head clear from John Welsh’s awkward in-swinging free-kick soon after.
Roberts was having an interesting tussle with Wootton, and when he got the better of his marker in the 30th minute and passed to Rhodes, the striker’s square ball set up Lee for a low drive which went narrowly wide of the right-hand post.
Lee’s battle with rugged centre-back Ian Goodison was providing a compelling sub-plot to the tie, and the Town man did well to hold off his rival and tee up Rhodes in the 35th minute, only for the frontman’s shot to fly well over, just like Akins’ effort from distance for Tranmere a minute later.
A 44th-minute corner provided Town with another opportunity to open up the home defence, and when Grandison hooked clear Roberts’ flag kick, Nielsen had to be alert to punch clear as Ridehalgh shot from the edge of the penalty box.
Rhodes had the ball in the net for a second time two minutes into the second half, but the effort was ruled out for a foul on Nielsen during the build-up.
Tranmere were looking livelier by this stage, however, and left-back Zoumana Bakayogo flashed a shot narrowly over in the 54th minute before the home side won a penalty for Roberts’ foul on Dale Jennings two minutes later. West Brom loanee Lateef Elford-Alliyu struck the kick low and hard, but Smithies, having gone to his right to thwart Glenn Murray from the spot against Brighton on Saturday, this time went left to make another great save.
Arfield then took centre stage as Town pushed forward aiming to settle the issue with another goal, first putting a teasing ball right across the face of goal, then shooting low from Gudjonsson’s pass.
Nielsen couldn’t keep hold of the ball, but the lurking Rhodes was unable to take advantage, and in the 64th minute, looked on in frustration as his right-footed drive was saved.
But three minutes later the striker was celebrating after Lee’s lovely low cross from the left gave him a simple close-range finish for his 14th goal of the season.
The big striker had provided the assists for both Town goals, and was given a standing ovation by the 410 travelling fans in a 2,598 crowd when he left the field to be replaced by Lee Novak, making his return from a hamstring injury suffered in October, in the 75th minute.
By the time Garner replaced Rhodes in the 81st, Town were seeing out the game, with their fans looking forward to the prospect of the clashes with Carlisle which will decide who is heading to the national stadium in April.
